Juggling Afoot
by Rakusa
Summary: Her day had not ended how she envisioned. Especially not with a phone call from HIM. That said, it wasn't exactly how he planned it either.
1. Chapter 1

Juggling afoot, (There be)

1.24.2013

AN: Also not an update but a new story. Don't worry, I'll get back to DD. Soon.

AN2: I started writing this without a summary and so I'll make one up now, I was too excited to get in on this story to really bother with framing it for readers... same thing with the title... hmm... what to say about it?

Summary: Her day had not ended how she envisioned. Especially not with a phone call from _him_. That said, it wasn't exactly how he planned it either.

* * *

Chapter 1

"Darien?" Surprise was paramount in her voice as she answered her cell phone. It had been ringing for the last hour but she hadn't been able to pick it up until now and even so her hands were still full. The cell sat couched between her cheek and shoulder as she brought the heavy box in through the door.

He hadn't called her since... well since she met him in Vegas.

"Where are you?" He breathed harshly and she couldn't help but look up from her box in surprise.

"At my shop." She answered without realizing that he wouldn't even know she had a shop or where it could possibly be. But since she didn't realize she didn't explain but he didn't seem to need an explanation.

"You slipped your security detail to go someplace so obvious?" He bit out tersely.

"Security detail?" She felt weak. "Why is there a security detail on me?" She hadn't even noticed anyone following her. "They must be good."

"They're the best." He responded and she realized she'd spoken out loud. "And yet you've managed to shake them." He caught his breath as if resetting his temper and pushing it down. She hadn't known him very long but she'd only known him to be angry and it must have been difficult for him to do such. It must have been very serious for him to put away his natural aggression towards her. Which was conversely ironic really. "I imagine you haven't seen the news."

"I've been busy." She replied a bit annoyed at how he had barged into her life, again.

"Listen carefully _cara mia_. There are people looking for you, bad people. They're going to find you. When they ask-" He inhaled sharply and she wondered what had set him off. "They'll ask you if I care for you. I want you to tell them that you mean more to me than anything else in the entire world."

"But I don't." She countered not understanding the gravity of the situation.

"I want you to tell them this. And Sere, I do care for you." He breathed heavily. "Please do this for me, it will protect you."

"Wouldn't it be better-"

"_No_." He highly stressed. "Leave the shop, go somewhere unexpected and wait for Falcon. I'll call you right back." He clicked off before she could protest and she felt her heart beating faster. She put down the box on a counter top and grabbed up her purse, turning back to the door, she barely locked it and crossed the nearly deserted street when she felt a presence behind her and she slipped into a restaurant that was readying to close. It wasn't far enough away she knew, but with the presence of other people, _hopefully _it would dissuade a scene. Her phone pealed off again before she could explain her plight. She felt safe as a half dozen people worked on closing up. There were too many witnesses!

"I shouldn't tell you this, but since there is no way I can get to you in time, I need to give you all the information. Please don't be afraid. I tell you this not to scare you but to give you the best possible advantage." He spoke before she even greeted him, having just sliding her phone open. These must be _really_ bad people to have him so worked up.

"Go ahead." She breathed shakily.

"They've tracked down the last three women I've been seen with in an intimate setting. They've shot all three in the head when they've denied any closeness with me. They cannot be allowed to do this again. They can't-" And here his voice cracked. "_kill_ you too. I promise you though, if they do take you, I will find you and bring you back. Nobody will ever touch you again."

"Darien?" She asked, her lips trembling.

"Serena." He sounded like he wanted to say something more, something important but the phone was taken out of her hands as a group of men came in. It was only then that she noticed that all the employees had gone into the back for a variety of reasons and would come back out at any moment. One of the men went to the door and stood in front of it, keeping it from opening again.

"She's unfortunately unable to continue this conversation." Then he shut the phone without realizing who he spoke to. He might have taunted Darien otherwise if he had known, or perhaps he had done so intentionally, just to torture Darien. Not that he really cared, he just didn't want the blame for her death on his hands as well.

Another man forced Serena to her knees and the man who had taken her phone pressed a gun between her eyes. That was a definite kill shot. She looked up at him with defiance in her eyes. He had a hat on to hide his face from the cameras but she saw him clearly and she gasped as she realized who he was. The biggest gun-runner in America had come out personally for her. This was not his territory and even her, who didn't watch or read the news knew his face.

"Let's cut down the chit-chat, shall we? I'm going to ask you one simple question and I want honesty. Are you Darien Shield's girlfriend?"

"Honesty hmm?" She refused to be cowed. "No, I'm not his girlfriend." She raised her hands to stall him before she even said it, his finger flexed almost impulsively. "But-" Her glance flickered over to the camera she knew was in the room and she scowled at it. "I _am_ his wife."

"His wife? Ho-ho-ho, now that is spectacular information." He removed the gun from her and she breathed in relief, her spine hurt from staying so still and she couldn't help that little tell. "Hear that boys? We've got Mrs. Shields on our hands!"

There was laughter from the men in the room and she felt hands on her arms and hauled her to her feet. "We must treat someone of such status with respect! I thought you were just another whore he'd brought to bed. I had hoped for a woman that could bring his attention to us, but with you, we can bring him to his knees. He won't want to let his wife come to any harm." He brushed the gun against her jaw and she whipped her head away from it, glaring at the man.

She was brought over to a chair and sat down in it. "What do you want?" She demanded unimpressed.

"Oh I've got exactly what I wanted, I got you and soon I'll have what belongs to me but that doesn't mean we can't have fun in the meantime. He turned and looked directly into the camera. "You'd hate that, wouldn't you?" Then the man turned back around and roughly grabbed Serena's face in one hand, his meaty palm covered most of her face. They were huge hands and two of his fingers could probably crush her skull if not seriously damage her jaw. His lips were cruel and painful on hers and she fought against him, her nails scratched deeply at his cheek and he let her go, furious that she managed to draw blood and he smacked her backhanded and she went flying to the ground and couldn't move for several moments.

It was good that she was still on the ground because suddenly all hell went loose. Bullets flew over her head and shattered windows. They ground into the walls and into the men surrounding her. She covered her head with her arms though she knew that wouldn't protect her if a stray bullet decided to track her.

The man in charge grabbed her ankle and started dragging her towards a back exit and she prayed that any employees that had remained were all right and wouldn't be caught in the cross fire as his men opened fire back. She refused to go willingly and tried to dig in to the slippery floors. As if anything she could do would be any resistance to a man of his size and power. She grabbed at anything that would offer even the most momentary slowdown and felt her shoulders straining as she gripped a table leg and kicked at the man behind her, not understanding her own strength as she was unwilling to let go, and to do so it put strain on her joints. They were screaming at her to give in but her heart fought back and she couldn't release her grip. Thank goodness that the table was bolted into the floor otherwise she'd have taken the table with her out the backdoor.

There was a few shouts in Spanish that she didn't understand and a muffled curse and she was released, she pulled herself further from the man and closer to the leg of the table. He took off with the remaining men and she couldn't let herself believe that this might be the end, that he wouldn't come back for her. She squeezed her eyes tight and wrapped her arms around the leg of the table in a more secure hold and flinched as she heard male voices and feet crunching the glass in the restaurant and them spreading out as they moved quickly through it.

A hand landed on her shoulder and she flinched, squeezing the leg tighter. "Serena?" His voice was flat and familiar. She'd heard it before and she knew that the man behind it would be unemotional and direct. "Are you hit?" He spat something at one of the other men in the room and she felt another set of hands on her. "I knew it was a risk to open fire with you in here, but we couldn't see you but we saw them and knew if we could take out enough of them we could follow them back to where they were holding you. Darien's going to kill me." Falcon groaned and knew that he was scared of his boss, something she would not have associated with the stoic man so similar to Darien. "I swear I didn't know you were in here." There was a pause. "Serena? Please say something, I need to report back to Darien and I would like to tell him unqualified good news."

Men were leaving and following out the back door where Raia had disappeared through and some were coming back in. "They're gone sir. We have men following them in the Terrain." One of Falcon's men reported. "If all goes well we'll have him pinned down shortly."

"If all goes well." Falcon repeated but his attention was still on the woman on the ground. "Serena, you're safe now. I'll bring you to Darien..." He knew being so close to the matter that it wouldn't be as reassuring as others might believe, since nobody before today outside their three person circle even knew that Darien had married her. However to his surprise she relaxed her death grip on the table and turned to him, she sagged into his arms and he swept her up instantly, not taking her acceptance lightly and moved quickly out of the devastated restaurant.

"Get the tapes." He ordered all calm again now that he had what he wanted and with his boss's woman now in the protected shell of his arms. He had never heard his boss the way he'd heard him over the last week. Now he would restore the balance and put Darien's mind at ease as well as fill his arms again with all the answers to all of his questions. Nothing was more important than a good woman and Falcon had spent a lot of time since she'd entered Darien's life following her and learning that she was a very good woman who had gotten a bad deal with how things went down. And it had just gotten worse.


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2

AN: To 'No', I understand your frustration, but I _do _finish stories occasionally and the ones that do get finished often have distractions in the form of other stories. I can't guarantee on the outset which ones finish and which ones don't, it's a mystery to me too! But I can promise DD to be finished in the next... month, maybe 2. Flamingos will be finished as well over that same time period. I'm just so excited by _new_, it's like a glittery ball for me to play with until I get distracted by the next new thing. But I am also firmly attached to some things and will keep going back to it despite my better judgment or a logical reason. The whole SM verse is like that for me. I've always told myself to move onto something a little less... embarrassing?, but I keep finding myself drawn back to this world and that's the same thing as my stories. Certain stories keep drawing me back and you'll get a random update months after I've moved onto to something new. Sometimes you'll even get a completion out of me just when you've given up hope that there'll ever be an end. I'm sorry on the outset of every story I write for the unpredictability of my consistency. That's unfortunately just how I am.

–

Darien ended the call with Serena hitting two for his speed dial to get a hold of Falcon. This was the result of her arrival into his life, his chief bodyguard was relocated to the second position. The man had always been number one as not only his bodyguard but as a trusted friend and confident too. Now a man he had known since nursery was second and for what? A woman he had met a six weeks ago.

A woman whose life was in grave danger if he didn't get things moving in the right direction _now. _Falcon answered the phone at the beginning of the first ring. "She's at the shop." Darien's voice cracked with stress.

"Was my next stop. I'll be there in five. And Darien?" He paused before he clicked off, waiting. "I'll get her and bring her back to you."

Darien didn't respond and hit the one for Serena. He had too much to tell her and not nearly enough time. He gave her the basics, the ones that he pleaded for her to repeat, then he pounded it home though she had ever reason to hate him right now. Had every reason not to do as he said, but she needed to know and needed to do it. He could hear the shock in her voice and the question that lingered.

He hadn't gotten in contact with her again for her safety while all of this had gone down, he was trying to find the answers and the reasons those women would be pinpointed. If he didn't contact her then nobody could follow the non-existent trail to her. And they had been in the clear, there was nothing linking him to her until those bloody photos had surfaced and by then he'd been detained.

The police had found what connected the three women, his most recent conquests, or so the public believed. So they had come to question him just before the photos hit the local gossip mill. They were released after the media noticed the pattern too. The photos weren't even damning, they were just of him eating dinner with her. He'd lost the paparazzi after that and he'd _thought_ they were thrown out as unimportant and possibly a business meeting made casual. She had been dressed nicely but a little stiff to be anything else and that was because she had just gotten through with a meeting with another individual in regards of her shop's expansion. He couldn't help but be a little proud of her with that notion, _his_ wife was making a name for herself. But so far it hadn't been big enough to warrant any interest in those that followed him. He thought she was safe out in her own little world. That was until that bloody paper dug up the image of her as one of the last females he had been seen dining alone with. Even if she hadn't meant anything to him, she would have been in danger just because she had been in contact with him at one point.

He had been answering the police's questions, been going over and over again how he hadn't seen two of those three women for _months_ and that he wasn't interested in them and was definitely not the one who had committed the crimes. That if he was any way involved it was because whoever had killed them had been trying to get to him. He watched all the footage that they had of their deaths and his stomach rolled as each of them were asked the same question and each of them begging for their lives, they had nothing to do with Darien, that he didn't care for them and so wouldn't be helpful in anyway against him.

That had been their downfall and they were met with doom for if they were nothing to Darien then they were of no use to the man questioning them either and since they had seen his face and knew what he wanted, he killed them. They had outlived their usefulness.

A man had come barging in as the was forced to watch and look at pictures for the second time and dropped a new one on the desk. The second he had seen it, his chair had scraped backwards as he jumped to his feet. "I have to go!"

"Sit down Shields. You're not going anywhere."

"You don't understand." He was already feeling the anxiety build up in him, he wondered how far this knowledge stretched. He'd sent Falcon to follow Serena since the day she had ran from him in tears and he could only trust his best man on her heels, he'd stay far enough away to not be noticed in anyway and would stay close enough to protect her.

He would also be reading all the gossip columns and looking at all the rags to see if Darien entered them and would handle any fallout from afar. He had PR representatives to field the questions and reduce damage to his reputation. Falcon was there for more personal matters.

It had worked too and he was already aware of Serena's new involvement and had tightened his distance from her. The police refused to allow him to go until he blurted out exactly who Serena was to him and his fears for her safety. Since their jurisdiction didn't extend to Illinois they had let him go to take care of matters and already local police were informed and instructed to keep an eye out for any unusual behaviors and people in their area. There had been laughter on the other end, wondering if they knew just where they were and how common place that description was, they still promised to keep an eye on things. But that had been an entire day after the papers had caught the story and it was like wildfire to dry bushes.

It was already night when he was released and had to cut through a swarm of media at the steps waiting for his exit and peppering him with questions he had no intention of answering. His bodyguards forced his way but it was all too slow. It had taken _hours_ to get from the police precinct in his area of New York to the airfield that housed his private jet. Hours that he didn't have, hours however that got his jet fueled up and ready to leave the moment he stepped foot on the tarmac.

He had just taken his seat when his cellphone pealed off. Throughout the drive there Falcon had given him updates and it was all pretty mundane things. Nothing unusual or out of the ordinary had happened, Serena went about her day like she always did. Nothing to give away any intention of escaping her personal security detail by the best man in the business. But nothing had gone right that day, and her erratic behavior shouldn't have been cause for surprise.

It was just _the__worst_ possible timing.

He couldn't even call her right away as they were getting ready to lift off into the air and he didn't want to delay that any longer. The sooner he got to her general location the better. She _lived_ smack dab in the middle between Champagne and Paris, Illinois. She worked in Paris but Falcon had said something about her home address technically being part of Champagne's jurisdiction. All he knew it was a farm somewhere in the flattest land on earth. There weren't even tall buildings to give it some sort of interest.

He'd never been and he probably wouldn't have gone now if her life hadn't been in serious danger. Though he had been planning on calling her before all of this started, he hadn't known her very long and how they parted was disastrous but he missed her. The death of the first woman stilled his hand and thankfully it did. He hadn't any reason to connect it to himself but it had given him shivers as if it were a message, the way she died. She wasn't particularly disliked by anyone he knew of, but she did run in somewhat seedy circles at times. He was thinking about paying his respects and finding out when her funeral was when the second one fell. They all lived in New York so crime did happen and once was bound to happen, twice was odd and he didn't even need a third one to figure out that it wasn't coincidence. He'd set Falcon on it from his side, but maybe it was too much to keep up with Serena and work on it while Darien tried to maintain an unknowing front and take over another business all at the same time. He too was investigating this from his own angle.

Falcon had just reported a third possible victim when her face flashed upon the screen as her body had just been found. It took another few days before the cops narrowed down a suspect and pulled him in for a chat. He couldn't have left before this and he wasn't about to walk in unannounced. He tried to pretend that he didn't understand how the dots connected and pointed towards him. But then he 'slowly' figured it out for the cops and getting off the hook when Serena's face was splayed out in front of him. The name was unknown still but it was enough. If Raia had seen it, he would get the rest of the information easily.

Darien _knew _it was Raia and turned the cops onto that fact too. He was the only one with a grudge big enough to harm innocents in an attempt to get at Darien. Not only harm them but to end their lives too. The only who didn't care what the fallout was, nobody could touch him because nobody outside his crew knew his face, nobody that was except Darien.

Raia had the technology to pair Serena's picture with her papers and track her flight in and out of las Vegas. Would know every little detail about her that was available electronically. Since Serena lived mostly off the grid it wouldn't be as easy as most of the other women her age, but certain knowledge, the most important stuff would be discerned easily. Raia could already be there and biding his time to strike.

This new knowledge that Falcon had lost her tail was just the moment he needed. It would be dark in Illinois by now and under the cover of night he worked the best. However it could have been broad daylight with her surrounded and it wouldn't have stopped Raia or even make him hesitate. Nothing would. Darien should have done something about him years ago.

When the flight evened out he dialed Falcon first. "At the soup kitchen, she's not here. Going round her home, maybe she forgot something." Later, when all of this settled and he was calm once more, Darien would demand how the best tracker in the world could have lost sight of the most important woman in Darien's life.

Until then Darien's heart twisted and was in his throat as he ended that call and dialed Serena's number, a number he'd never used before from a number she had in her possession, he'd put it in there himself while they were flirting. She hadn't called him either, probably still furious about how they'd left things. What if it was too late? What if he didn't reach her in time to relay these very important words. They were the only things standing in the way of her certain doom, he didn't know what would happen if she answered differently, answered positively to Raia's questions but he had to give her a fighting chance. He couldn't let this scenario already play out the way it had before with all the other women. He couldn't let himself believe it was possible. Serena was different, he'd always known that about her. She would continue being different.

When she answered his first call she was curious and a little confused about his call but he had heard no traces of anger, just a trace of reluctance. "Darien?" If it was possible, he thought she sounded distracted too.

Relief had flooded over him and made his words a bit sharper than he intended as he hounded her of her choices. She was shocked to learn that he even had people on her. What a foolish girl to believe anything else after the way they'd parted and what they'd done. But he couldn't lash into her now about any of that, he had more pressing matters to attend to. Then the rest passed quickly and as he called her again he could only pray that she would do as she was told and she was in the middle of saying something to him when the phone had cut to a male voice he recognized too well and then it was severed.

He'd sat shocked for a moment, fear clawing up his throat and clenching his stomach to the point he felt nauseous. It was one thing to be in the moment himself, quite another to be helpless and stuck on a plane somewhere over the great lakes. Then he sprang into action and contacted Falcon with relief to know that his man was almost there. "Raia's there, be prepared."

"He's probably stashed her in a vehicle and will do clean up before they leave. We'll get her Darien, we will."

His mouth had compressed to a fine line at those words, they would he had no doubt about that, but he didn't know in what state. It was too long the minutes he sat with his head in between his knees, his hands on the back trying to will the plane to go faster, trying to get to her to take care of things himself, of willing Falcon to call him back with the news, any news, even if it were just to say that they had finally gotten to her shop, to learn anything new. But he didn't dare call for an update, he didn't want to distract his men in anyway. He had to trust that they'd handle this as they'd handled everything else in the past.

And when they got Serena back, he'd make it up to her. Try to right any wrongs that had happened to her because of him. He would ensure that she never wanted for anything ever again, never felt a moment of unhappiness. He'd move the world for her and she thought he hated her. Oh god how that was anything but true. He had been afraid to tell her, had clammed up and had reacted badly, then unable to with the time and distance between them that was for her own safety, then on the phone, when it might be the last time he got to speak with her, last time to tell her anything, he thought it wrong to do so over the phone, wrong to taint her last moments with confusion and if she pulled through it, always have her wonder why he said it then and if it were real.

Falcon had reported back to him weekly but used codes and he had found himself getting in deeper and deeper with every moment that passed. Every new thing he learned about her, even from an outside source had only strengthened what he had known instantly.

Serena wasn't only different, she was better.

The plane was on the ground and he shot to his feet, already at the door waiting for it to open when his phone rang again. The news was far earlier than he had thought it would be, yet it was far too long of a wait for him to rest assured or know what was going to be said before he answered the call.

When he did there was noise in the background, men talking and orders being issued. "We have men in pursuit of the van that just drove away and currently I am looking through the restaurant that Raia had been standing in moments before. If we find any clues then I will report back to you, until then, stay with your security detail at the airfield, it's the safest location for you sir."

"Falcon-"

"I don't know." Then the other man hung up the phone. Darien paced the ground at the airfield restlessly, his guard was uneasy and kept moving with him but preferring not to. He was used to them, had been since he was old enough to recognize that these men were strangers who had no intention of getting close to their charge. But today they were too close, too tightly wound around him and he'd only seen them do so a few times before. He snapped at them, this time it was too much and they took a step away but no further.

Before a single note was finished he had his phone back up to his ear and the knowledge he gained from that short sentence had all of the air whooshing out of him and he sat heavily on the hide-a-stairs. "I have her."

His heart struggled to beat again and when it did it took off on a chase. Its dance was rapid and he struggled to breath normally. This was far from over but soon, _soon_ she'd be where she belonged, where he should have never let her leave six weeks ago. He had been foolish and his foolishness had cost the lives of three women. He couldn't have known but he did, he'd always known that something like this was bound to happen, which is why he thought he kept her safe hidden away from the world, even hidden away from him.

A headache began to form and it pounded just behind his eyes, where no pressure from external sources would reach. His forearms crossed against his knees and he kept his gaze straight out where the car would soon be arriving. He wanted to go to her but knew it was stupid, it would only delay their leaving and he wanted her out of here instantly.

He'd send men to round up all of her family and any close friend she might worry about and their families and would move them somewhere safe too. No more harm would come to her, even emotional harm.

The dark car drew near and his men stiffened their circle around him, drawing their weapons as the car slowed and then stopped and the door opened. Falcon was _carrying _Serena but once they were within feet of each other, she was determined to be put on her feet.

Darien didn't care, he was already breaking through his guard and snatching her up for himself, dragging her physically close and holding her closer in his heart. She was cold and he hoped to warm her even as he swung her off her feet and carried her into the plane.

She was shaking and a blanket was draped over her but he did not let her go. She had wound her arms around his waist and buried her face into his shoulder but he had not yet seen her eyes, she hadn't looked at him once. His grip tightened and he looked over her head at Falcon who had taken a seat facing him.

"What happened?" Darien spied the wet patch still on Falcon's shirt and knew instantly what it was from. His heart hurt as it pounded in his chest trying to escape its cage and he tightened his arms around the girl, hoping she could keep it still.

Falcon in the first time in all the years that he knew him looked away and already he knew whatever he was going to say, he would not like it. "I didn't see her. I didn't know she was in there with them when we opened fire. It makes sense now, they were all standing around, taking over the small restaurant she had probably sought refuge in. I haven't seen any of the footage yet from her shop, the restaurant or even the streets, if there is any. I don't know any other detail except that she was clinging to a table leg like it was a lifeline and it probably was. It took a lot of coaxing and prying to get her away from it. She hasn't spoken."

Darien ran his fingers through her hair, trailing a comforting touch against the back of her head. "She's in shock." He didn't say anymore on the matter, and Falcon realized he'd gotten off easy. If anything, that made it worse but he settled back into his seat and watched the two of them with the attention to detail that had given him his moniker or at least in part.


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3

Darien hadn't thought Seren'a behavior strange and while he worried about her he was confident that she'd snap out of it soon enough. However when an entire two days passed with little change worry had flared to life. Had Raia somehow managed to damage her in some way?

He hadn't yet watched the tapes, he was too busy with Serena and organizing all of the other important details that would face them in their next move. Now he would call in a specialist and while he was being vetted, Darien would watch the damn tapes.

That task done, he emerged out of his study with Falcon with a new appreciation of what Serena had gone through. There was the scene that had preceded her casting in the role the other women had been in before but from there everything went wildly out of control.

If that hadn't been enough, then the forced kiss with that slime-ball who was only doing it to assert his power over her and taunt Darien, well that would have shocked and violated a lot of people's sense of self and might have contributed to this shell-shocked Serena. But then more happened and Darien was still furious with the way he had just smacked her down to the ground. The kiss he disliked but he understood it even if he didn't agree with it. It had been a ploy and an attempt to make Darien go out of control and he would have, had it been the end of it and the man had managed to get away with Serena, making him wonder at all the different possibilities that might assail her in that man's hands. Having her, even the shell of her nearby managed to calm him and he was aware that no such thing had happened and made him appreciate what had gone into that decision making. He would still rip off Raia's lips for it, but he understood and could file that away logically.

The smack had been unnecessary, she was captive and was mostly compliant even if they were rough handling her. He didn't forget about that anger she had broadcast his way or the way she had announced who she truly was to their enemy. That knowledge could be the death of her, but it could also protect her, and gave credence to her words that she had not repeated but tweaked to fit her conscious. She was far too honest at times.

But he hoped that honesty would carry her through everything that would face them in the future.

If none of that was sufficient to clam up the way she had, well what happened afterwards would have scared even the most hardened male. Shots had rained over her head from both directions, any one of them could have hit her, they'd pelted down close enough. Her clothing in parts had been torn and seared and it was only with the greatest of luck that nothing had really hurt her. A few parts on her legs were reddened and one even had scabbed over and might leave a scar, but nothing had dug into her muscle or bone. It was a bloody miracle.

He was still reeling from shock in seeing the video and he had not lived it. Had not felt that heat so close and the impending doom. Had not had a meaty hand on her leg trying to drag her into hell. Serena's strength was only beginning to be scratched, she had strength neither of them had known about and a large amount in her character too. _Her _actions had saved her life. Everything he had done had threatened to end it.

He sat down next to Serena and ran a warm hand down her back. She was wearing one of the sweaters the woman he'd hired put her in, but it was a sweater he'd bought for her. It was warm and it looked comfortable, it was soft to the touch, which should have made her feel more secure. She reacted to his touch, jerking a little and turning her wide-eyed gaze towards him. She felt like a mannequin right now. She moved stiffly but at least she reacted. At least when he was in the room with her.

She had her arms moved up, clothes draped over her, arms put back down. She was pliable to the woman's administrations. But it was Darien who lathed on the burn lotions, who iced her wounds when she woke up screaming in fear and pain. If it wasn't for that screaming he'd have thought she completely shut down.

Serena wasn't eating, she would eye the food as if it were poisoned and he didn't blame her for it. She didn't know any of them that well. There was no need for her to trust any of them. But two days was too long without nourishment. In another she'd be too dehydrated to function at all. It wasn't like he could force it down her throat. Much more of this and he'd be forced to hospitalize her.

"Serena, please drink some water, if you do that, at least then I'll know you're on the path of recovery." He pushed it into her hand and even raised it up to her lips. At first she refused to drink it and then she slowly took control and sipped at it. He breathed a breath that he didn't know he was holding and relief flooded his veins. When half her glass was gone he took it from her when it appeared she wasn't going to drink any more and set it on the table close to her. "Talk to me?"

She lifted her eyes to him again and he saw her lips trembling before she shook her head. He gathered her close and just held her until those tremors passed and even then he kept on holding her. He kissed the top of her head. "Ok, if you can't talk to me, then I'll find someone you can talk to."

It took a further two days before there was anyone who was qualified to do so _and_ pass rigorous security checks. Anyone with even a remote connection to Spain was crossed out. Serena was improving marginally, she drank at least. Anything he set in front of her she would sip at until it was gone and she moved around the apartment that was packed with security. Not one entrance was free from a man stationed at it and there were more roaming the place. Darien really didn't know what they were doing all day, probably just checking behind every door every few minutes. There were three in Serena's room alone and when she was in there she mostly slept.

He hadn't heard a word from her and he knew she was still refusing to eat but at least she drank. He would even dose her water with vitamins and other nutrient rich sources. He wanted to stay with her, be with her every moment of every day now that she was with him once more but he had other pressing matters to attend to. He had to keep up appearances in the public and also deal with the police who still had more questions. The fact that most of those questions were repeated a dozen times only annoyed him.

He'd also passed on the tapes from Serena's near kidnapping to both the local police and the FBI. He'd also kept copies of all crimes so he and Falcon could work through them on their end. Though he didn't think much more would be garnered from it. Not that he'd tell the police that they managed to source copies of evidence.

When the psychologist that Falcon had finally agreed upon and had thoroughly vetted, more than any other person that was employed in their firm, Darien was shocked to find that it was a woman. He had been all set to lay in on the man when he finally agreed to an appointment, it didn't matter to Darien whether or not the man had previous appointments and arrangements. Darien had thought this matter was much more pressing and had made sure that Falcon had passed on the dire need of him rearranging his schedule to fit Serena in. Even promised a hefty pay increase and private retainer fee. It still had taken the man two more days to finally come around with things in order and only because he had made a big deal that he'd needed to take a sabbatical to ensure that others didn't know.

The fact that the man was a woman had surprised him enough to keep him quiet, that normally wasn't a factor on how Darien reacted or his lectures. In truth, the idea of a woman talking things through with Serena had actually been a pleasant surprise. He hadn't cared too much about details as long as the psychologist had fit a very tight and rigorous screening and qualification. The woman bit only gave Serena something to relate to and reassured him that the shrink wouldn't be making any inappropriate moves on a vulnerable patient.

Well... maybe. He was a bit too old fashioned for his forward thinking mind in this current climate and society. The short hair had originally sparked thoughts about whether or not that was an outward manifestation of the woman beneath. He still wasn't sure after the fact, but he had the suspicion that she didn't swing either way but was one of those curious A-typical people who found no interest in sex or the people that got it or gave it. She was more interested in the mind and unraveling the complexities. She had enjoyed working with Serena because she was a puzzle.

A puzzle was an apt term for Serena, he was still trying to figure her out. It might have been easier if he'd spent more time with her but he didn't think it would. She was a girl who was impulsive and reactionary and those descriptions only gave him so much to go by and it was a poor forewarning.

He was also a bit misguided at first when he noticed as she walked into the light that her hair while dyed black had a rather blue sheen to it. A woman who dyed her hair at such a young age had to be covering up for something. Later when he pried he learned it was because she was getting gray hair at fourteen for pretty much no reason. Other than maybe stress. He'd never met a woman as A-type as he was when it came to making sure everything was perfect. That was until this psychologist entered his apartment. He still thought she could have done a better job at dye picking.

Darien didn't stop the introduction to Serena however, the blond might appreciate an oddball approach. Later he learned that Dr. Amy Waters was anything but oddball and very much on the straight and narrow and had an absolutely no nonsense policy. Except later when it came to Serena who elicited the odd smile from her. The only other person to draw that look from her was a surprise to Darien and the answering smiles back.

–

EAN: Can you guys see the difference in their personalities and thought processes? I'm sure the way the characters are described their thought processes should actually be opposite but I figured that the way they are on the outside is different than the way they are within. That's what makes them so frustrating to each other and complex. It also makes since that Serena's so straight forward, that's how she is, she thinks something and does it. Darien while instant to make a decision and correct _usually _in those decisions has a lot going on in his mind all at once and its not always a straight line to get there but he follows it. His houghts jump a lot of necessary information but the answer's right. It's usually when you over-think it that it gets muddled. (Again I realize that with males and females its usually the opposite as well but as the saying goes, with genius there's often a bit of crazy).


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter 4

Serena in her own way was dimly aware of the efforts that Darien had put forth for her. She wasn't quite as catatonic as people seemed to believe, she was just... disconnected?

In the late mornings when Serena was roused out of bed by the woman Darien had hired she would stand and have no thought to dressing for the day. If she did then she would just stare blankly at the closet and see none of her own clothes or a desire to wear anything in there. If things were set out for her she'd get dressed but usually someone was there to help her. Her arms were sore and it seemed almost impossible to move them on her own. Flashes of her clinging for her life and the pain that sliced through her arms and shoulders would cause a recoil. She probably should have been taking pain pills to reduce the swelling but they were slowly hurting less and less. She didn't have as much trouble with her legs.

The rest of it? Well, she just didn't know what was wrong with her. She was acting like she was on autopilot and had retreated inward to protect herself. But she was aware and she was soaking in all the information around her.

And in that awareness was a feeling similar to impressed by Darien and all he had gone through for her. And that was before the imperious Doctor was introduced. When Doctor Amy Waters was presented to her the woman had sparked a bit of amusement long thought buried in the blond. The woman had a name and she decided to look like it too. For instantly when she saw her, she couldn't help but notice the blue in her hair and in her face as the depths of the ocean looked back at her.

The woman had pounced upon that quiver of a smirk and hadn't let her live it down since. Serena knew she had been overreacting but she just didn't have anything to say, she wasn't hungry for the first time in her life and she was totally without land beneath her feet. She was lost and adrift in a world she had no idea how to handle or adjust to. That was without accounting for the extreme shock she'd been cast or the very real danger she had been in.

Amy helped her see it and in their private meetings she was encouraged to call the other woman by her given name. But Serena could see and hear and knew that everyone else was to firmly adhere to a more formal address. That also encouraged a smile to play at Serena's mouth as she thought of anyone bringing not only Darien but Falcon to heel. Amy was certainly the woman to do so but she hadn't been anything but warm with Serena. She managed to extract so much from the shell-shocked blond and realized that it was only a mild form of PTSD but it would rapidly spiral down into a full blown case had it not been addressed quickly.

"I'm glad we caught it in time and it was smart of your husband to be aware that you needed help. I would have liked to see him apply some of that in his own treatment towards you though."

Having found a woman she could confide in and trust, Serena found her voice working again. It would have always come back on its own, she was just shifting things through her brain and needed some time alone to do so. Alone was not something she ever got, not in this prison that was to be her home. There were more guards here, on her, than Fort Knox or the pentagon or that prison in the Caribbean or was that the Pacific? At any rate she had felt stifled and a bit nervous by all these new faces with grim expressions and knew all of them were packing heat. Amy was a balm to that and she found herself relaxing and working it out with the other woman. It took her several days to finally start talking to Amy and it had been over a week before this conversation took place. "He's trying. He's here when you're not." Still not ready to share a lot of details, especially not about her private life or her relationships, Serena's mouth compressed, giving only a glimpse. "He holds me all night long."

"Oh." The 'blue'-nette seemed pleasantly surprised by that. "Perhaps he's not all that bad. I thought work seemed more important. But it can't be if he moved everything out of my way to get me here. Though it was the other man I spoke with... Falcon? What an interesting name."

That was the best part of Amy, she didn't push the way one would think a psychologist would push, she didn't ask a million questions and gave no answers. She just talked to Serena as if they were friends and let things naturally come. She didn't even require Serena to talk that much at first, just carried on a leisurely conversation as if they were both part of it. It relaxed Serena and made things seem mostly normal as if it was one of her close friends at home going on without noticing if Serena was having any part of it.

Some of the time they just sat and watched a movie together or played cards or something else to occupy Serena's mind. Serena knew it was just part of the healing process and routine that Amy set up but wanted to believe there was more to it than that, especially when Serena said something that had Amy laughing hard. There were times it seemed as if they were almost friends. True friends, but Amy was being paid to be there with her. Serena could never forget that completely. At the same time though Serena was good at reading the most difficult people and she could see that Amy forgot she was being paid at times too.

Then there were the moments when Amy was nothing but business, a catch usually to the same knowledge that Serena had spied. Amy had let things get too personal and that was not her intention, allowed herself to get too attached and needed to instantly clarify matters. Serena saw through that too. But she could be such a task master at those times. She'd set out new parameters and would try to push Serena further than she had before in therapy and would try to do more as well. Yet Serena couldn't help but notice that there were limitations to even her methods.

Like how when Darien was at work and Falcon was the sole decider on what could and could not go on. He was absolutely immoveable to certain aspects of therapy. The most major was Serena's presence in the apartment. She was not allowed to go out, she wasn't even allowed onto the terrace that she knew went around the entire top floor of the building Darien worked in and lived in. He thought there were too many risks and not enough people to ensure that she was perfectly safe, not like he could assure with her here. He didn't even think this building was secure enough. Yet he didn't worry about Darien quite like this.

Probably, her voice spoke back, because Darien could bring Falcon to his knees with groving without even lifting a finger and Serena couldn't do that. If anything happened to Serena, Darien would put that full affect onto Falcon and he was incensed into avoiding such pitfalls. Also Darien could defend himself far better than Serena could as recent history could contribute. He wasn't as easy to pick up and move or drag or rough- Serena shook her head as she refused to think about it or dwell in those thoughts.

The moments before Amy's arrival was always waited with anticipation, she was also so good at getting such thoughts out of her head and onto other things. But not even Amy's presence could measure up to the thrill she had knowing that when Amy left, Darien would soon be there. It had been only a few days after the good doctor was hired and already Serena had fallen into a pattern of excited waiting. She couldn't even say she was nervous or scared anymore. Not like she could fear for her life when she was protected by so many layers of armed guards. More than that though, she kind of forgot to be when her new favorite person was in her life. And then there was Darien too.

She should have been happier that he was back in her life and she _was _happy. More than happy if she was being totally honest with herself. Absolutely ecstatic might be more appropriate, but she was also weary and aware that this could dissolve at any moment. She couldn't as easily forget what had happened between them the last time she had even communicated with him. Or the accusations he'd leveled at her. The only reason they were still married was either because he hadn't gotten around to the divorce papers or was waiting to see that nothing had happened because of the night they'd spent together. He hadn't even called her since then, not until about a week ago. Six weeks without hearing a single word from her husband. She knew she had his number but refused to be the one to break the silence when he had created it out of his own bullheaded blindness.

She knew she couldn't think for a moment that his interest in her was more than that. In fact he was positively disinterested. Or at least she would have laid money to that claim a week ago, now... she couldn't be so sure. He was being surprisingly sweet and thoughtful. He'd brought home her favorite flowers just yesterday.

At that thought she shook her head. Flowers were one thing, but she shouldn't be starting to think of this place as _home_. He couldn't stand her and their marriage was a complete joke. To even contemplate this place as a permanent location was a very foolish thing to do indeed. Even the flowers weren't above suspicion, how had he known they were her favorite? She looked at the pink lilies and ran a finger down one of their soft petals. They were her favorite because of the color contrast with the white rims that were synonymous with regular lilies but were vibrant pink in the center. She knew that these were technically called star-gazer lilies. Anyone could love a rose, what she wanted was something more than normal.

But it was all a very tempting idea. For he had swung up every day to see her just to see her and then he started calling too once she started talking again, asking her how she was, if she needed anything, and answers to those questions weren't always strictly positive. What she wanted was to get out of this pent-house and go _home_. She had a life there, friends, family, a shop she'd saved up enough money to open two years ago and that had taken off like a rocket since. She'd specialized in local artists and she expanded from the typical wall hangings and pottery to actual functional items with a twist. Chairs and tables and even bedroom sets were on display not to mention the typical items and _more_. Anything in your home could be art and she'd proved it with how she showcased it. Her ideas were being bought up by big vendors in Vegas, the flagship for any new idea, and she'd just started working on all of that three weeks ago. It had taken her over a week to get her life back on track after the emotional upheaval Darien had given her.

At the time she couldn't figure out why she would break away from her very sane life path and marry a man she didn't know, even while drunk, or why his instant dismissal of her the next morning would have devastated her as much as it had.

She spent a week celebrating the victory her shop had had with her friends and family and the next one trying to sort everything out when she hadn't gotten papers delivered to her in that week. She kept expecting it every time she opened her mailbox. Perhaps he didn't even know where she lived.

Now she knew that of course he did, he had her followed! But maybe followed was the wrong term, she had smarted at the idea that she had someone tracking her every footstep and reporting back to him like someone on parole and even inmates got more freedom and personal space than she had. He had sent people to protect her and it was probably a good thing he had. She just wished he'd talked to her about these things.

Her life wasn't her own anymore and Amy helped her work through some of that as well but the woman couldn't begin to understand what it was like or what it would be like if life ever got back to a semblance of normal.

She breathed out heavily after Amy left for the day and looked around. She hadn't even asked Darien yet what had happened with Raia. She was living in a bubble and it was time to pop it and rejoin the real world. Whatever that would be entail.


	5. Chapter 5

Chapter 5

Falcon walked into Darien's office while whistling. "Got your mail." He tossed it down onto the desk in front of Darien who looked up from his computer at his man's entrance. "It's got a real beauty in it too."

Darien suspected it was from Raia, a clever letter to tell him exactly what he wanted to stay out of Darien's life, at least temporarily. Until the debt was settled he wouldn't stay out for long. Darien had been a fool to think it. A name change and several years out of the limelight was a pipe dream if he thought Raia wouldn't put the two together after awhile. It was a lot longer of a run than Darien had suspected it would be.

He picked through his letters, most of them unimportant and none of them harmful in anyway. Most of his important correspondence was through the intranet or email anyway. Then he came to the whopper that Falcon had noted and instead of scanning it to see what this payoff would be, he found himself smiling instead. If felt good to smile again. "That is something."

"Going to tell her?" Falcon asked from the chair he had taken possession of.

"She probably suspects I'd have gotten it already." He slid it out of the large envelope and smoothed it onto his desk. "It needs a frame."

"There's more." Falcon nodded back to the brown envelope he'd set aside and he looked in it and found a glossy cover to a few photographs. "Need a frame for those too?"

The first one had Darien protecting Serena's identity from the photographer, thinking at first it was a paparazzo who had managed to stay on their trail and it had managed to look very sweet in photo form. He had her sheltered in his arms and looking down at her with tender eyes. The next one had him realizing that it was in fact a service for those at their establishment to be received once they got home and processed. They were both turned towards the camera and smiling. In the photo you couldn't tell that their eyes were bright or that their walk was a little off with the sheer amount of alcohol they had managed to consume the night before.

He couldn't remember all that much about that night, even now seven plus weeks after it happened but he could remember that the sun was starting its pull upward and pink had touched the horizon. It had been very beautiful and had cast Serena into a soft relief as he looked at her while waiting for his car to pull up. She was like an angel and the softest smile he'd ever seen had been given to him.

She was constantly stretching his perceptions and sometimes his patience. He'd only known her for a grand total of one day before this whole thing went down in Illinois but she had shown many different sides to her and promised that a lot more was waiting to be discovered. He'd known then that he'd wanted her in his life and that he'd never be bored. He'd never know which Serena he got. He looked at the three important documents confirming that she was his in every way that mattered with a grin planted firmly on his face. "Yes." He answered his friend and the short answer was enough. Then he thought about what he wanted exactly. "But _one _frame for all three items."

"Not a problem." Falcon was smiling too but he did a better job at hiding it from his face.

Darien had questions as he picked them up and set them aside but making sure they wouldn't be damaged. Questions that the answers to wouldn't be so easily forthcoming and he probably didn't have much right to them either. There was one though he wanted to know the answer to but he was hesitant to push it, how would he even open with it?

And, he sat back in his chair staring blankly at the screen that would have usually held his attention transfixed, what was she feeling, really, through all this? He'd been elated to have her here, no matter what the cause or how she was but he knew that wouldn't last and he'd been working at it to make it more comfortable. It all came back down to the fact that he'd practically kidnapped her. Sure he'd saved her from another one but the only difference was that she'd seen him in person before. She didn't really know him, how could she feel safe in this kind of environment? She was surrounded by armed guards most of the day who she didn't know and they were there to keep her in as much as keep the rest of the world out. He wouldn't be surprised if she felt like a prisoner.

He wanted to take her out but every time he'd suggested it Falcon had shot him down. He could have overridden Falcon's decisions easily but he needed the man to keep him grounded. They had no idea where Raia was and what he was planning but at the same time Darien hated keeping her in one spot. They would know it and would try to attack it at some time. Her safety was important but so was her state of mind.

He couldn't move fast enough on his future plans. Now that she was talking again he could heave a great big sigh of relief though it was stilted and she never talked about her feelings on the day she'd almost been abducted. And she was at least picking at her food. Like she was when he walked in that day and found her in the kitchen.

Darien kept telling her that she didn't need to eat in there where it was cold and stark, that she could eat in any of the other rooms if she saw fit. She ignored him and continued on with it. Perhaps it was what she was used to. He really didn't know how the other half lived. He bent and kissed her temple as he came in. "_Ciao bella mia_."

"_Ciao_." She echoed in response and then set down her chicken that she was pealing the flesh from the bone. Everything was cooked for her so she needn't worry about getting sick from it, but she insisted to eat the chicken this way. Something about it being rotisserie so it was better with the bones intact. He didn't care she had quirks and he liked that about her. "I need to get out of here." She announced with no build up. "I'm getting stir crazy and feel like I'm about to tear out of my skin."

"Please do not do such a thing, I love your skin." He ran a hand up her arm and she froze before tactlessly pulling away from him.

"_Love?_" She spat in disbelief. "You cannot love a single part of me."

"You are getting your fire back." He clapped in approval though there was a mocking edge to his lips at how she decided to show it. "As for what I feel, you have no clue."

"That's right, because you've never deemed it important for me to know even a sliver of how you were feeling. Not that you've had much chance to tell me."

"And I apologize for that." He was dismissive as he sat back as if that was all that needed to be said. _He _knew that there should be more and there would be once she felt safe, once this whole thing had blown over.

"You can't keep me here like a bird in a gilded cage." His lips lifted in a half smirk at that and she conceded that point. "Well I suppose you _can _and _have_ but I have rights as an American citizen. You are in effect holding me captive and I can call the police."

"And the police would tell you to stay right where you are. They can not afford the protection that I have provided you and frankly I'm starting to wonder at just how much the police can do at all. They have limitations that my men do not and soon I shall put things into motion that will allow them to stretch those boundaries even further."

"What are you talking about?" Serena's eyes were huge in her small face and he cursed himself for laying this on her so unexpectedly but she had put his back up with her anger.

"We're going to my villa in Sicily. There at least you will have access to the grounds."

Serena shook her head to clear it of her shock and he was kicking himself for laying yet another thing at her feet. "I don't even have a passport." She countered hoping that would slow his hand.

"Don't worry. Make a list. I want all your loved ones names on it so I can bring them to you once you've settled in."

"And if I forget a name? Will you just leave them there to be targeted?" Her eyes were pained as she looked back at him and he shook his head wondering how he had let things get so bad that she could look at him with those accusing eyes. She did not trust him at all. It was any wonder that she had allowed Falcon to bring her to him when in her mind he was as bad as Raia.

"If you have forgotten anyone I will send someone to bring them along as well. If you forget five people, each time you remember someone I will have someone bring them to you. It doesn't matter how many people you love, I will make sure they are with you and protected, even if it means bringing both towns to the villa."

She frowned at him and he held her gaze not flinching once but knowing the wheels were turning, trying to figure out which button would push him to reveal his true colors. "Amy." She said simply and he lifted a brow.

"What?" He didn't know how the good doctor played a part in all of this.

"Amy, I mean Dr. River-" As if she needed to clarify a woman he had in his employment, whom he had personally painstakingly looked through her entire file to assure himself she was good enough for Serena. "I want her to come too. I know I haven't known her very long and I think love might not fit your definition but-"

"She's coming." Darien cut her off. He'd seen how attached Serena had grown to the doctor. "She was always coming." And not just for professional help.

Serena's blue eyes were looking at him again as if not quite believing it but he gave a silent victory cheer when her eyes betrayed her and told him she was a little impressed too. She'd be someone else than who she was in a few days when she discovered that he meant his promise and just how far he'd go to guarantee that it happened and _not_ show how impressed she was. He wasn't even holding out hope that she'd be impressed by the location she found herself in, just the lengths he'd gone to make her happy. Money didn't impress her but grand gestures did. Even if they seemed tiny to him.

"Thank you." Then she fell silent again and picked some more at the chicken but she didn't eat any of it. He grabbed a piece to see if it tasted wrong but it melted in his mouth.

"Eat, this isn't like you." She opened her mouth to counter that point on how he could know but shut it again. He didn't know why but perhaps she was trying to hold back on that harsh retort when he'd just offered her asylum for all her friends and family? He guiltily gave into an explanation. "Falcon pointed it out, you're not a model eater." He hesitated not sure how much he could tell her without giving the game away. "I knew that when I met you but I thought it might have been a fluke."

"Well you don't have to worry about your _wife _being fat now."

"That's not what I said or meant!" Darien caught himself before he snapped at her but couldn't keep the edge of frustration out. Then he caught the double meaning in her words, something he hadn't questioned her about. "You're not pregnant?"

"Got it in one." She said moodily and he wondered when she found that out. "Two weeks ago."

"I see you're not the only one who is readable." He said calmly though nobody had the uncanny ability to read him like she could.

"As if." She humphed and sat back in her chair. "I just know how your mind works and what your next question would be. I grew up with your lot."

"I'm nothing like you know." Darien argued softly. "I'm sorry you're not pregnant but in the circumstances I guess it's for the better. I should have asked earlier, if you were you would have worried about the baby and how it fared." She hadn't called him either to tell him what she would have thought as good news.

"Sorry?" She queried with confused eyes. She had such expressive eyes.

"I had hoped to use that as one tactic to keep you married to me." Hell he might as well admit to everything now.

Her eyes seemed to dull rather than sharpen in interest. "I don't see why that would be a goal you'd strive to make; seeing as what you said to me when we woke up and that possibility entered your mind."

"I was terrified." Darien reached out once more and covered her hand with his. This time she didn't pull away. "I'd just done something incredibly reckless and thoughtless and it wasn't like me at all. I have lists, lots and lots of lists and none of them are written down for anyone else to look at. I'm cautious and obsessive with my things. To invite you in while drunk was a moment of weakness that didn't sit well in the cold light of day. I overreacted. I'm also very protective, not just of my privacy and work-related, but also with my things. I'm protective of my woman too. You're my woman and even then though I wasn't outright thinking it, I was thinking of protecting you. I put into motion a way to keep you safe so something like this would never happen. I knew even the night before when I met you and I was sober that I needed to keep you from being connected with me. I thought I had done that." Yet he had jumped on the chance to keep her tied to him even if nobody else knew it.

"By pushing me away?" She was not impressed anymore and any ground he had gained had slowly disappeared again. She didn't believe him either, that it was the only thing he could think of.

"My reputation is less than stellar, and even if it wasn't about that alone, I had done as I set out to do. I protected you from being connected to me, cutting down all contact but what would be done in emergency. It would have worked too if it wasn't for Raia making a big deal out of whom I talked with. Your photograph would have never emerged and no mention of our life together would have made it to anyone but ourselves."

"And Falcon." Serena sighed and slowly turned her hand over when he thought she would pull away again but she gripped it instead. "And if I ever decided to marry again there's that pesky thing about already being married."

"You won't marry again." He vowed and she looked at him lazily, bemused and amused by his statement. "You won't get a divorce out of me. I don't believe in anything like that."

"That's a knowledge I could have done with earlier." Serena teased. "It would have made my thoughts a lot less chaotic. I was always wondering when the papers would land on my doorstep and I'd have to explain them and what happened if anyone caught sight of it. Nobody would have been the wiser or would have had to know."

"Falcon would have personally delivered it to you and away from prying eyes and taken them away once more after ensuring a signature at the moment he presented them."

His words caused a smile and it was one of the first smiles he'd bore witness to since that morning he'd hurt her feelings. "For someone who doesn't believe in divorce you sure have thought that one through."

"It's just the way I operate. Falcon knows how to conduct a job well."

"He sure does." Serena agreed. "I wouldn't have even known he was tailing me if you hadn't told me and he made sure I knew his face so if the problem ever arose I would instinctively remember him."

"That wasn't part of the plan." Darien argued his fingers tight around the glass he had picked up, hers, but it didn't matter to him. "You were to never be in danger, so he wouldn't have needed to make his presence known at all."

"I suppose I put him in a difficult position." Serena shrugged. "It was either come into the shop to be assured I was still there or wait it out."

Darien cast his thoughts back to remember what Falcon's excuse had been. Apparently the sight angles in the shop weren't as good as Falcon had liked and had to go in to investigate. The plans of the shop were different than the actual layout. After that one time, Falcon hadn't needed to go in again to know where she was. Yet an unease had settled over his employee a few weeks ago and had striven to set up pin-cameras. "He just wanted to meet you." Darien's words weren't the full truth but he didn't want to worry her.

"Anyway, about this no divorce thing-"

"I mean it." Darien held her gaze and she held it a lot longer than he suspected she would but then she did look away. Her voice was almost a pathetic mumble in contrast.

"We weren't really married. Perhaps an annulment?"

"That would require us _not consummating_ our marriage. Which we had."

Serena's shoulders lifted and dropped again. "Then what do you suppose we do about this unfortunate situation we've found ourselves in? You don't want to be married to me and some day you will wish to marry again and have this problem on your hands."

"If you dare to suggest what I think you're about to, forget those thoughts and let the words dry up in your mouth. I will not deign to hear it and I will not be responsible for my actions if you carry through in saying a great untruth." He cut across her before she could say what she intended.

Her eyes flashed up to his in anger. "I would have thought it'd be easier on you."

"If you really thought that then you have not been listening to a word I've said."

"But _why_?" She suddenly demanded. "Why go through all this effort for me? What makes this so different from all the other females you have ever known?"

"You are my wife. I might have been drunk at the time and I might not have reacted well to the knowledge but you had been my choice. I chose to marry you and as such you are afforded a very privileged life from now on."

"Privileged?" She asked, her voice sounding shocked. "So far my freedoms have been greatly reduced! I do not call what I have here as _privilege_."

"You will, in time, when this danger has passed." When she just eyed him sceptically and continued to eye him, waiting for him to speak more, he heaved a sigh of frustration. "What?"

"I'm surprised by your words is all. I'm not sure what to make of them. There are a few ways to interpret such a statement. I had assumed that when all this danger has passed that nothing much would change, I'd go back to my life in Illinois and you'd forget all about me, using our marriage as a shield from getting too deeply involved with another woman. Unfortunately that lifestyle makes me believe I will have no life of my own and a pesky marriage that I must adhere to that's only good on paper but keeps me from getting on."

"Then you have thought wrong. Now that your identity and connection to me has been smeared all over the tabloids and no doubt verified by other sources, I am willing to change our arrangements. In fact I intend to keep you at my side for the foreseeable future. I am sorry but there is no going back to your little life in nowhere Illinois."

He knew he'd said the wrong thing the moment he saw the color bleach out of her features. She had not known what she was getting into when she said yes. There was no way to know the full extent of the life change she had undergone when she agreed to marry him. He wished he had known just went on through that creative head of hers and what she thought this would entail. He hadn't helped matters by not telling her _exactly _who and what he was. He felt a pang of guilt at his won role in this.

"I cannot return home?" She breathed as if she hadn't enough for words.

"You are home." If he thought she was pale before, it was nowhere near the paper-white she'd turned now. So much for being pleased.


End file.
